To create self-employment opportunities for the youth and increase farmers’ income, animal husbandry and dairy development minister Laljit Singh Bhullar on Sunday asked farmers and milk producers to avail the benefits of 50% subsidy and take part in training for quality milk production. “The state government is providing financial assistance of ₹17,500 per milch animal to the general category and ₹23,100 per milch animal to the Scheduled Caste beneficiaries for purchasing two to 20 milch animals,” Bhullar said.
He said the government was providing a subsidy of ₹5.60 lakh on the automatic silage baler-cum-wrapper machine. Milk producers can make silage of the green fodder during the surplus season of green fodder and sell these bales during fodder shortage months.
Farmers can also earn by dispatching fodder bales to other parts of Punjab and the country, said the minister, adding that small and urban dairy farmers can also get a balanced animal feed year-round at a reasonable price.
Bhullar said livestock management, food, health facilities, better marketing and the use of information technology are important aspects of the success of dairying.